About Elizabeth Cramer

Elizabeth Cramer

Plant Lover

Elizabeth Cramer is a chef, plant lover, and potter. She loves teaching others how to cook and grow their own food. A California native who spent her childhood within earshot of the San Diego Zoo’s orangutans, she now lives by the beach where she battles powdery mildew and farmers’ tans.

Her love of food and where it comes from stems from her time spent living in Spain as an adolescent where she lived downwind from an olive oil factory, biked to school among olive and orange groves, and ate fresh local food. Right out of college she joined community gardens and really began to really fall in love with watching plants grow. A plant obsessive, she’s recently begun canning in an effort to meet her goal of living 100% off of her own land.

Q. What’s your favorite plant?

A: My favorite plant has got to be hot peppers. I’ve always loved lighting my mouth on fire and the glorious hot pepper is the lovely ticket to that happening. I’m currently growing about ten varieties which I pickle and turn into hot sauce.

Q. What is your “spirit vegetable”?

A: My spirit vegetable is the tomatillo. It grows quietly nestled inside a little husk and doesn’t come out until it’s ready. That certainly describes my personality.

Q: What’s the most unusual plant you’ve grown?

A: The most unusual plant I’ve ever grown has got to be my cherimoya tree. The fruits look like a grenade hanging from the tree, but are the sweetest thing on the planet. When the blossoms first appear you can smell them on the other side of the garden and it’s the most wonderful scent in the world.

Articles from Elizabeth Cramer